Amor infirmitatem
by NightLark
Summary: "You are better then this Klaus" she whispered, each word strained. I grasped her hand. She smiled slightly. "I forgive you" One-shot. Summary inside.


-1**A/N: This just appeared in my mind and demanded to be written. It's just a one-shot.**

**Elena managed to convince Klaus not to sacrifice her, and he left to pursue Katherine. They married and somehow she got pregnant. When Alaric injects Katherine with vervain she looses the baby. Klaus releases his inner monster on the people that wronged him, and the ones they care for.**

_Part I_

_Una dies in noctem aeterna_

The happiest day of my eternity, or at least the happiest at that point, was the day Katerina agreed to marry me. When you're a vampire, happiness seems to disappear. You settle for any emotion that isn't monotony. Of course, there are other emotions that help. Lust, anger, passion. They're all interesting but happiness is the most…the most intense. Sometimes it gets so rare that vampires just switch off the emotions, not caring to experience

The night that Katerina agreed to marry me I felt pure happiness. There were only two other occasions in my life that matched that feeling, and they both came afterwards. It was in the forest. We were watching the stars, so beautiful and a thousand times brighter to our eyes then to that of a humans. I could see the stars burning and then go out as their cycle ended, waiting for another to take their place. Humans couldn't. One star was the same as another to them. There was so much wonder in the natural world that was invisible to the blind humans. Invisible to me also, when I looked at the woman laying beside me.

"Why are you staring?" she whispered, not taking her eyes of the heavens.

"I was wondering how I got to be so lucky" she laughed without humour at my comment.  
>"You're stuck with me for eternity Klaus, I'd hardly call either of us lucky" she said. I propped myself up on my elbows and looked at her.<p>

"Do you really mean that?"

"no. of course not. There is nothing I like more then being with the man who hunted me for five hundred years"

"Katerina. Do not say such things" I said, sternly. She sat up and smirked.

"my apologies"

"Katerina, I want to ask something of you"

"Ask and only then shall you receive"

"Fine. I want you to marry me" her eyes widened in surprise though she tried hard to disguise it.

"Really?"

"Yes. That is…if you don't mind the idea of being stuck with me for eternity?" I said sarcastically.

"Of course I would marry you but I don't understand why you would ask me. I am nothing. You could have any of the women in the world as you so wish…why me?"

"A very…wise person told me that when love exists you should hunt it until you get it and that as long as you're searching, you miss what is right in front of you. You Katerina. I don't know if what I feel for you is love since I've never experienced the emotion myself but I do care for you. So…will you marry me?" I asked.

"Klaus….yes…of course" she said. She reached over and kissed me passionately. I felt happiness consuming me and knew I had done the right thing.

_Part II_

_Nubibus cecidisse in tenebris dea_

On the day of our wedding, Katerina looked like a fallen Goddess. A dark Aphrodite, the goddess of love who so enjoyed using the powers she had to toy with men's hearts and minds. She was dressed, not in white as was custom but black. Funeral colours. I laughed at her humour when she said that.

"You see this as the end of your life?" I laughed.

"The end of an old life, the beginning of a new one" she said, smiling. Katerina had the most beautiful smile of anyone I'd ever met. It lit up her entire face, made her seem alive.

It was a small wedding. Most vampires didn't heed a particular religion. Too many prejudices. We found a small church and compelled the person there into marrying us. About a minute or two later we were married and beginning our new life.

Of course, nothing really changed for us. I could hardly picture myself or Katerina living the idealist human life with a cottage, white picket fence and a puppy. We hunted together and we travelled together as we had done before. The marriage was just a formality, a ritual that we felt couldn't be ignored. It was the human side of us, finally emerging after all these centuries. I think maybe we were more human then we'd ever been since our immortal lives begun. I knew I was, perhaps even more human then when I'd been one. I still hunted and killed but I did so sparingly, not hunting for pleasure as I had once done. I hunted purely for food and so did Katerina, though I wasn't sure if this was choice or simply mimicking my actions. Certainly we were happy in our peaceful little lives. We didn't think there was anyway we could be happier, nothing missing. I didn't…I think perhaps Katerina had regrets. There were things I could never give her. Things I had stolen from her in my naive youth when I sort to punish her. Her family, her child. I knew nothing I could do would ever make up for what she'd lost but I kept trying. She never complained but I knew that deep down she was upset. It saddened me to see her that way. I only wanted her happiness.

_Part III_

_Inter signa fiant_

I thought there was nothing I could do but it eventually came to light that I didn't need to do anything. I'd been doing it all along. I'm not sure how it worked out the way it did. Perhaps fate had this planned for us or maybe Katerina's prayers had been heard by some kindly God. Perhaps there was no reason for it. It merely happened and we should be grateful for that.

It was a Sunday. We were by a lake, sitting on a private rocky island that was inaccessible to all but the most accomplished swimmers. Katerina looked so human, so much like her doppelganger on that day. There was a glow around her, contentment radiated from every pore of her being.

"Klaus. I've got some news" she said, shyly. That alone got my attention. Katerina was many things to a lot of people but no one would label her as shy. She was usually so outspoken, to the point that it became irritating. I rose from my seat and went to her side at the water's edge. One of her slender, olive-toned arms rested upon the surface, causing gentle ripples to spread.

"What is it my dear?" I asked, placing a hand on her cheek. Her brown eyes met mine and they seemed filled with sadness yet joy at the same time. I repeated my question.

"Oh Klaus. I enjoy being with you so much…I don't want this to end"

"It doesn't have to end Katerina. We are immortal after all"

"Yes" she agreed "But what I have to tell you may drive you away from me"

"nothing could ever make me leave you Katerina, except for my own foolishness" she looked away "Katerina, tell me what's wrong" she let out a long mournful sigh before speaking.

"Klaus…I'm pregnant" for a moment I was dumbstruck. I could only stare, my mind reeling at the sentence.

"oh" me, who had over seventeen languages to choose from and centuries of speech to fall back on could only manage one syllable. Oh. I managed to compose myself quickly to avoid looking foolish "How is that possible?" she shot me a smirk.

"I would have thought at your age you'd know how babies are made, Klaus"

"That's not what I meant and you know it. Vampires can't procreate" I said, stating the obvious fact.

"No…vampires can't. I'm not sure the rules follow with a hybrid though" she looked pointedly at me.

"oh" again with the oh. I really needed to control myself. "So this is my fault?"

"in a word, yes"

"And how do you feel about this?" she shrugged.

"I'm okay. I wanted to be a mother. I guess I got my wish. I'm just worried I'll be a disappointment" I wrapped an arm around her, pulling her body against mine.

"You will be a fantastic mother, Katerina. This is perfect" she moved away, eyes meeting mine once more.

"You're not mad?"

"Why would I be mad?"

"Well…it's not really what we had planned. I was worried you'd leave me when you found out" I took her hand and pressed it to my lips.

"Katerina, I made a vow. For better or for worse, remember? I'm not going to leave you"

"You're not?"

"No. I will stay with you for eternity my darling. And…this is a good thing. We get to be parents which isn't something I ever thought would happen. This is good. We can make this work"

"We can me this work" she repeated my words, a small smile forming on her face "you and me, together"

"Yes. Together"

Three happy moments. I thought my life was perfect. I was so very wrong. Those moments weren't my life. They were a gift.

_Part IV_

_Dies incipit nigerrimus_

Me and Katerina had moved into a small abandoned house near Mystic Falls. I wasn't sure why but the supernatural just gravitated towards that town. We were happy there. Or so I thought. Katerina was beginning to swell with the child within her. She relished the feeling, although it made hunting difficult.

She had left on one such hunting trip, where I had declined joining her. She had barely been gone ten minutes when she returned, clutching her stomach. Blood stained her clothes. She entered the house and collapsed onto the floor. I was at her side in an instant.  
>"Katerina!" I said, cradling her "What happened?"<p>

"Hunter…in the woods. Vervain dart" she snarled.

"Who?" I asked, furiously. she was spared replying by a spasm ripping through her body. She cried out in pain and grasped at my wrist.

"Don't leave me Klaus. Please" I nodded, holding her close to me.  
>"I won't leave." I promised. We sat on the stone floor, my back pressed against the wall as I held the woman I loved. I was useless. There was nothing I could do except hold her and comfort her as pain shot through her. I was sure that whatever had been injected couldn't have just been vervain. Katerina had a tolerance for the toxic herb, it never effected her like this. There had to be something more…but there wasn't.<p>

Eventually her body stilled and her eyes, which had been clenched tight shut as she screamed, opened. They met mine and I opened my mouth to speak. A smell caught my nose and I halted in my words, trying to locate the source. It was a smell I recognized only too well. Blood…rich, warm blood. But not just any blood, there was the additional intoxicating scent that revealed it was vampire blood. I looked at Katerina and saw blood pooling rapidly between her legs. She let out a small scream and grasped me harder. Her breath was coming in short gasps and when she looked at me, her eyes were filled with terror.

"it's gone…I lost it" she stammered. At first I didn't know what she meant but I gradually began to put the pieces together. The baby. That's why she'd been in so much pain. Vervain on a hybrid baby.

This time there was no 'oh'. there were no words at all. I let Katerina slip from my grasp and rose to my feet. She lay on the ground, watching me. I felt all powerful rage consuming me in a way it had never done before.

"Who did this Katerina?" I asked, quietly, trying to reign in my temper before I scared my already fragile wife.

"Alaric Saltzman. The Salvatore's vampire hunter" right. I started towards the door. "Klaus…don't do this" she called after me. I froze, considering her words. In the end they only added fuel to my already over supplied fire. My Katerina would never act that way. She'd want revenge. I knew what had happened. All our exchanged words of love had weakened her mind. I clenched my fists and left the house, hearing her crying behind me.

I moved with new purpose as I headed towards Mystic Falls. I was going to find and kill Alaric Saltzman, but that was only the beginning. There was one other person to blame for this. One person who had started this. A person who should have died years before but had manipulated me into sparing her.

Elena Gilbert.

_Part V_

_rapax fit in praeda_

Alaric Saltzman wasn't hard to find. He still lived in the same flat he'd lived in before, and the décor was the same. He looked very much the same too, apart from a few streaks of grey in his hair which marked the passing of time.

I knocked down the door and entered swiftly. I was so glad invitations lasted throughout the years. He was in his living room, reading and drinking. He leapt to his feet when I arrived, searching for a weapon. He grabbed a crude wooden stake. I knocked it from his hands and tossed him like a doll against the wall.

"Alaric" I growled the word, spitting it out venomously as it sullied my lips. I saw the fear in the man's eyes "Do you know why I'm here?"

He nodded. He knew exactly why I was here.

"Katherine" he said. I flinched at the word and seized him by the throat.

"Do not dare say her name!" I snarled "You tried to kill her and murdered my child in the process!" his eyes widened in shock at the last part.  
>"I didn't know. I swear I didn't" he gasped, hands clawing pathetically in an attempt to loosen my grip. I tightened it, cutting off his words.<br>"And if you had? What would you have done?" I snarled. The truth hung in the air. Even if he had known, nothing would have changed. he would still have attacked her, still have slaughtered my unborn child. I snarled and released him. He fell to the floor but immediately tried to regain his footing. I knocked him down again, then crouched beside him.

"I want you to feel what it's like to die as a vampire dies" his eyes widened as he heard my words and misinterpreted them. He thought I was going to turn him into a vampire? I almost laughed at the thought. While I did enjoy torturing people both mentally and physically, I wanted to simple kill the man before me. I held him down with one hand and picked him the discarded stake with another. He began to struggle against my hold as I raised the pointed wood.

"Goodbye Ric" I snarled, plunging the stake into his heart. He cried out as the sharp wood punctured his skin and organs. I released him, knowing he was in no fit state to even attempt to fight anymore. I picked up the bottle he'd been drinking from and examined the label. I grimaced, before reluctantly tipping the contents over him, soaking his already blood soaked clothes in it.

"Where do you keep the matches Ric?" I asked, searching. He tried to speak but all that came out was a strangled gasp. I found the matches quickly enough without his help and lit one, holding it close to his face. He flinched away from the heat.

"Stay still or I might drop it" I scolded. He forced himself to remain rigid, watching me intently. His hand twitched slightly. I smirked and dropped the match onto his alcohol soaked shirt. It caught instantly, flames spreading over his body. I watched him burn for a moment before turning and leaving the apartment. I had other prey to hunt tonight.

_Part VI_

_Incipit Agnitio_

I found it amazing that nothing had changed in this town. Elena was still living in her old house with her aunt and brother. I wondered if time had stood still after I left. Only the appearance of the people had changed. Her aunt looked permanently stressed, her hair was shorter and she was beginning to develop wrinkles. Her brother had also changed, a man now instead of the boy who had fought so valiantly to save both his sister and the witch. Two years could change a lot in a human apparently.

I observed them dispassionately from a distance at first, planning how to launch my attack. Elena wasn't home yet so I had time to think. I wanted to hurt Elena more then I had wanted to hurt the hunter. She had caused this. She should be dead and I should never have developed these feelings! Feelings made a vampire weak.

I went to the door and rang the bell. I was a showman, I inspired fear in my audience. I wanted Elena to fear me.

Her aunt answered the door. I saw the recognition on her face as she took in my presence.

"Jenna. May I come in?" I asked, reaching forward and seizing her. I pulled her out of the doorway, pressing my fangs against her throat.

"Say yes and I'll let you live!" I lied. She shook her head frantically. "Oh wait…you invited me in before" I said, brightly. Her face drained of colour. I sank my fangs into her throat, tearing the flesh and letting crimson flow. She let out a scream and shouted to her nephew who had only just come to investigate.

"Jeremy! Run!" she screamed. I snapped her neck, ending her life and entered the house. Jeremy ignored his aunt's advice and grabbed a ornament from the shelf. He hurled it at me, catching me on the head. It didn't hurt, only serving to irritate me, but it bought him a few seconds where he retreated into the kitchen. He snatched up his phone and a knife, trying to hold me at bay as he dialled frantically. I grabbed his wrist, snapping it easily and forcing him to drop the weapon. I grabbed the teen by the throat and considered what to do with him. I had no grudge against him and I always admired a fighting spirit. I decided to be merciful.

"Your death will be quick" I told him. He didn't look frightened at the idea of death and I wondered why. There was something that was irritating me. A memory about the boy. I shrugged and snapped his neck quickly. His body slumped to the floor. I turned and went up the stairs to Elena's bedroom, and settled down to wait.

_Part VII_

_Perdito angelo capto_

I heard Elena's car pulling up and I heard her when she discovered the bodies. There was a muffled conversation downstairs and I wondered if she was calling for help. There was the sound of quiet footsteps on the stairs, coming up and I waited tensely. The door opened, casting a puddle of light into the darkened room. Elena couldn't see me yet, with her limited eye sight but she knew I was there. I could sense her, her body was tense and alert as she searched for me.

"Hello Elena" I said, icily. She sighed.

"Klaus" she said, her tone unsurprised.

"You knew I was here" I stated. She nodded.

"I knew it was you. Even before Jeremy told me" Jeremy…the brother? I'd killed him. She must have detected my confusion because she spoke again "Jeremy can't die Klaus. You forgot that" her tone was almost teasing now.

"Ah. I knew I was forgetting something" it was odd how relaxed I could be around her. She disarmed me, instantly. That was the only reason her suggestions about love had become realities. She was more skilled at manipulating men then Katerina.

"So, you're here to kill me I take it" I nodded. She moved towards me until she was arms length away "Why? Why now after all these years. You had your chance when you planned to sacrifice me. You didn't do it then" she reached out and touched my hand "why now Klaus? What happened?"

The way she spoke was as a concerned friend would talk. I jerked away from her, angry at the familiarity she was expressing.

"Katerina and I married" I told her shortly "She fell pregnant" her face lit up.

"Klaus, that's wonderful"

"No! It's not! I'm a vampire! I don't do the marriage and kid thing, that's too human! Besides….your history teacher killed our child before it even had a chance to be born"

"And you blame me" she summed up "More then you blame him. For making you feel like a human. Making you feel weak"

I grabbed her by the throat and snarled, my face pressed against hers.

"I am not weak" I growled at her. Her eyes were calm and unfearful "Why aren't you afraid of me?" I whispered.

"I am Klaus. I've always been afraid of you but I know nothing I do or say will stop you. I only managed that once. And that was more luck then anything else" I tightened my grip, raising her high.

"But even after you kill me Klaus, those feelings will still be there because they were always yours. I didn't put them there, I just made you aware of who you are. The man behind the monster" I released her suddenly, turning away. My mind was at war with itself. I wanted nothing more then to kill her but something held me back, forbidding my actions.

"You can't do it, can you?" she asked. I snarled softly. So presumptuous. I turned sharply and advanced on the doppelganger.  
>"I can Elena. I can kill you in a second without a thought! I will"<p>

"Do it then" she challenged, her expression so like Katerina's. The old Katerina before she became too human. I stared at her. "You're better then this Klaus"

I snapped. I darted forward, seizing her by her hair and hurling her against the wall in one deft movement. She lay, sprawled on the ground with her accusing eyes on me and blood trickling from a gash in her head. I crouched beside her.

"What am I supposed to do Elena?" I asked, quietly.

"You do what you have to" she said "You kill me, you move on. You go back to the way you were before"

I looked at the doomed girl with new confusion and respect. She was far more perceptive and wise then I'd credited her. More and more of Katerina was showing in her, every second.

She staggered to her feet, wincing.

"Do it Klaus. Kill me. End this" she said, quietly. When I didn't move she walked towards me "Do it!" she shouted "Just get it done with! You've drawn it out for years, why wait any longer?" Still I did not move. She grabbed a broken photo frame, pulled the shattered glass and cut her arm. She held it out to me.

"Do it" she whispered. I moved without thought, relying on instinct. I pressed my lips to the wound, drinking the blood that had flowed. My fangs emerged and I tore open Elena's wrist. She didn't scream, her body merely stiffened. That was the only reaction I received. She stood perfectly still as I proceeded to drain her life from her.

As death reached out to claim her, she placed a hand on my cheek and forced my to look at her. I didn't want to look at her. I didn't want to see what I had done, what it was in my nature to do.

"You are better then this Klaus" she whispered, each word strained. I grasped her hand. She smiled slightly. "I forgive you"

Death took over and Elena went limp.

_Part VIII_

_Sive in bono sive in malo_

Katerina found me in Elena's house, sitting against the wall with my eyes fixed on the dead girl.

"Klaus" she sighed, preparing her lecture.

"Don't" I cut her off.  
>"Why?" she asked.<p>

"I was angry"

"So was I…but this? What was the point?"

"I blamed Elena for making me feel human. I felt weak and I took it out on her"

"She'd done nothing wrong" Katerina said, quietly "now she's dead" I rose to my feet, rounding on my wife.

"Why do you care?" I roared. She looked taken aback.

"Why are you taking this out on me?"

"Why do you care about her Katerina? She was a human! A nothing! Not important!"

"We were human once"

"Not anymore and that's all that matters. We're vampires. We feed and we fuck and we kill and that is all there is! We don't feel…feelings make us humans…feelings make us weak"

"You don't believe that" she said.

"Why shouldn't I?"

"because that's not the man I fell in love with. The man I married. The man I wanted to spend eternity with"

"You're wrong Katerina. I'm the same man I always was"

"I don't believe that" she said, stubbornly. I growled.

"Believe it! I am a monster! That is who I am and nothing is going to change that! Not you, not Elena, nobody! I am a killer. I enjoy being a killer and that is all I ever will be"

"Then kill me" she said. I stopped, midtirade. She looked at me, eyes the same as Elena's when I had hesitated about killing her "You wanted to kill me before, cause me at least two hundred and fifty years of suffering. So do it. Kill me"

"Why?"

"because" she said, her voice venomous "I can't look at you and see the man I loved when you act like this. I don't want to sully the memories I have by hearing your words. So put me out of my misery" there were tears of anger and frustration forming in her eyes.

"Katerina…" I began.

"NO!" She snarled "Kill me now!" I looked at her and felt the rage from before slowly eating away inside of me. I wanted to remove all reminders of my humanity. I'd been so determined to kill Elena that I'd forgotten, what she said was true. As long as I was with Katerina, those emotions would exist. The mirror image of the girl I'd killed.

I moved quickly towards her. I grasped her head in both hands, eyes meeting hers. There was no regret in hers, no sorrow, just determination and disgust for me. I closed my eyes and snapped her neck.

Her body fell like the others that evening had. I sat down in my previous spot, alone with my thoughts and the dead.

_Part VIX_

_A novus dies addo finem_

As the sun rose, I made my choice. I rose from my seat, stepping over the bodies of the two women. Their faces were more identical then ever, if that was possible. Identical expressions on their faces.

"I'm sorry" I whispered to them, though I knew there was no chance they could hear. I looked at Elena "You were right. These emotions are mine. Mine to deal with. But you were wrong about one thing. I am this person. It's who I've always been and always will be unless I do something"

I left the room, walked downstairs and left the house. I stood on the porch, letting the sun warm me. Slowly and deliberately, my right hand found the ring on my left. I stroked the smooth surface for a few minutes, then removed it. I placed it on the ground and moved into direct view of the sun.

It took a few minutes for the sun to take effect. I heard my skin burning. I didn't cry out. I bore it in silence like Elena. Like Katerina. My time was over and I was actually glad. No more eternity. No more monotony. No more emotions.

Just me and endless night.

_Nunc et in aeternum_

_Finis_

**A/N: What do we think? I was torn at the end between him dying and him going off and continuing the way he was before. I thought this was better. He chose to be the better man. In a way. Ahh…I just confused myself.**

**So, hated it? Loved it? Had no idea what was going on? **


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